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A couple observations (WFSB.1 sputter & WTNH Power increase?)

DJKraze

DJKraze

I fell asleep with the TV on last night during WFSB's news (it was a long day, ... er, dropping tangent now) and when I woke, Letterman was almost over but the main channel was chopped & screwed and impossible to watch (might have been what woke me). There were no problems with the .3 & .4 subs, so I tuned to .4 and watched until after the Late Late show (I forgot to tune back to check if it cleared up.

Also, has there been a change at WTNH? In the last few days, I am actually getting them now. Mostly stable with the occasional block patterns from time to time, with more than double the signal on the meter than what I used to get (almost never a picture, but about 25%-30% signal, now easily 50-60%). I have not moved the antenna, I have it locked on my usual spot for WGGB.

My only guess is either a change in the power or antenna location. Personally, I'd like to see a significant power increase on all the stations out there. I mean how many stations on the same pre-transition channel (or near enough to it) are even within 70% of the power level they had before? I still can't get MY 9 (39), WWLP (11), and nevermind even thinking about adjacent markets as I'm sure if I put up an antenna on the roof, I wouldn't be able to watch Boston, NYC & Providence stations the same way I used to as a kid growing up. WJAR is a perfect example, the antenna pattern has been changed so much, that the strongest antenna made will not bring it in here. Pre-transition one day, I was able to get it just off a wire I had draped across the attic floor before I had the chance to attach it to the antenna I was putting in. (a temporary wire until I got a quality one with less loss).
 
I'm in New Britain's south end. Soon after Com-crap screwed me over with the converter requirement for even limited basic, I dug out an old Radio Shack indoor antenna with two telescoping rods. The TV is by a south-facing window on the second floor. Not once has my Toshiba's signal meter shown less than 80% signal, despite WTNH-TV using VHF channel 10 for their digital. :)

WFSB-TV (CBS) channel 3 is already at the maximum 1 million watts visual ERP allowed for a digital station on UHF (they use channel 33). It's coming in OK now, but has given me fits before, since nearby Walnut Hill of New Britain causes a signal issue (reflection?) from WFSB's Avon Mountain site. I know that's the case, since I used to get WTNH-TV better on most days than channel 3 in the analog era.

Channel 18 of Hartford NEVER came in at my house during the analog era. Even today, their digital (on channel 46) is choppy and rarely stays stable for more than two minutes at a time. WEDH-TV (PBS) channel 24 only came in clear for analog once they moved to Rattlesnake Mountain around 2008 or so.

WCTX-TV (MY) channel 59 is about 2/3 on the signal meter for me. Once in a rare while, I'll get a short breakup.

WHPX-TV (ION) channel 26 of New London isn't perfect either, but stays in nearly all the time.

As for Springfield, MA? Analog or digital, I have NEVER received anything here. Analog was horrible and digital is non-existent. WWLP-TV (NBC) channel 22 did come in when I briefly lived in New Britain's east end in 1991. Channels 40 and 57 were slightly snowy, but still very watchable.

Lastly, I've had a blip or two from WFTY-TV (UniMas) channel 67 of Smithtown, NY this past week, showing UniMas on channel 67-1 and a relay of WXTV-TV (UNI) channel 41 of Paterson, NJ. The signal is barely there most of the time, causing my TV to display "23-1" and "23-2", their RF channel number.
 
I should clarify slightly, at no time was the signal strength responsible for the "sputter", the signal was at it's usual 90% or better. If I were to try to describe it, the video and audio were cutting up in a solid stop type of breakup. Almost like someone pulling the pinch roller away from a capstan on an open VCR, but with the picture going black each time instead of pausing. Or as I'm sure someone else might describe, encoding or decoding error.
 
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